Bride of the Forest Lord
by The Soul Cake Duck
Summary: During Kyuubi's attack on Konoha a chance meeting leads to a change in destiny and something more, Itachi is chosen to be the bride of the Forest Lord. Kyuubi x Fem!Itachi. AU Divergence.
1. Prolouge

Bride of the Forest Lord

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Hello all! As you have probably guessed I am starting _another_ of my chaptered story projects. Don't hate, I'm still going to be working on the others, I just need to get this one out of my head, where it has been living comfortably and pirating all of my thoughts away form my other stories.

I am going to make this clear right now. This story contains fem!Itachi, so if you don't like it don't read it. This is partial AU, the whole Fem!Itachi thing should have tipped you off.

I don't own any of this; if I did do you think I would be posting here?

Enjoy….

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_In the village of Konohagakure no Sato there was born to the Uchiha clan a girl, her skin was ghostly and paler than milk, and her eyes and hair were darker than a raven's wing on a moonless night. They named her Itachi, for in a clan which prized deception of the senses as an art above all others such an animal was as important as the fire that ran in their blood._

_In the forests of Konohagakure no Sato there lived a demon, the Kyuubi no Kitsune, Lord of the Forest and most powerful of the demon foxes. He was so powerful that a single swing of his tail could level an entire mountain. Kyuubi was a fox; a trickster demon who twisted reality for his own enjoyment, he was also said to he the spirit of fire itself._

_The two were linked by fate; although neither knew it yet._

* * *

To be continued

Yes, I am evil, I wrote a prologue.

My author's note is longer than the actual story so far, but that doesn't matter, because I will update really soon!!

Cake-chan


	2. The Crossing of Paths

Bride of the Forest God

Bride of the Forest God

Chapter One;

The Crossing of Paths

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Rawr!! See, I told you it would be a quick update! On with the plot! Spoiler alert up to chapter 401 of the manga.

* * *

Kyuubi no Kitsune tore through the outer wall of Konoha like it was a damp piece of paper, the little shinobi creatures tried to stop him but all they managed to do was enrage him further. The people in this little village that he allowed to inhabit his forest had forgotten that the forest was his, not theirs; the human creatures had forgotten the old ways and all that he could do now was kill them all.

He was making his way surely to the main part of the village when the wind carried a beautiful scent to his nose, turning away from his goal of the village-proper, the fox followed.

* * *

Uchiha Itachi had been out practicing her shuriken throwing when Kyuubi attacked, and now, as she ran frantically back to the Uchiha compound she prayed that the attack would be short and that the demon would lose interest in the village and leave. She could smell smoke and hear screaming, much like the sounds that haunted her dreams; making each one a nightmare that replayed the Third Secret War over and over in her head.

She rounded a corner that put her beside the Nakano River and found herself face to face with Kyuubi.

The great fox looked down on her, slitted red eyes boring into her own as she stared in awe at his huge bulk, with nine tails swinging chaotically behind him.

"So it is you." Kyuubi spoke, his voice a rumbling base with a constant hint of a growl to it.

"Me?" Itachi was proud of herself for keeping her voice steady. Kyuubi bared his teeth in what passed for a grin.

"You would talk back to he little one? Do you not know that I could rip you to pieces before you could even think to dodge?" The grin widened and Itachi found herself with a close view of even more razor-sharp teeth.

Visions of shinobi with half of their bodies charred away, others with deep gashes that wouldn't stop bleeding, showing their insides to people who should never have seen them; the smell of hospital antiseptic and the rushing of too few medics to too many patients, and the somber expression of the doctors when they informed you that you uncle or cousin were dead filled Itachi's head, so much worse than this.

"I am unafraid." She said, and it was true, he had said her death would be over in seconds and she took comfort in that fact, she would be so much luckier than all those who died in the war with Iwa.

* * *

Namikaze Minato, the Yondaime Hokage, Hiraishin-ed across the village as quickly as possible. The demon fox Kyuubi was attacking, but something seemed to have distracted it, he realized that he was heading in the direction of the Uchiha Compound and decided that nothing good could come from this, he had hear the stories about the Uchiha being the only ones able to control the demon fox.

He arrived at the gate of the compound in time to see Uchiha Fugaku and a squad of military police run past, he joined them, running alongside the Uchiha clan head, who nodded respectfully at him as soon as he realized the young Hokage was there.

The group of men skidded to a halt at the sight that awaited them. Minato could hear Fugaku's breath catch in his throat. The Kyuubi no Kitsune was towering over Itachi, his only daughter and heir.

They appeared to be having a conversation, because the demon fox was grinning and not ripping the girl to shreds and the young Uchiha was standing stock still but looked unafraid.

"You speak the truth." The demon growled, one of the military policemen with less fortitude fainted, Minato stood straight and tall next to Fugaku, who looked as though he were inwardly having a mini-panic attack.

The air seemed to shift around the demon and in the place of a huge nine-tailed fox there was a handsome man with long and wild red hair, slitted red eyes, and a trickster's grin; the grin widened even more when Kyuubi noticed the group of men.

* * *

Kyuubi looked down at the girl-child in front of him, this little creature that wasn't afraid of him and smelled so good, he had seen the shadows in her eyes when she had answered his question, this little one had seen death. He realized why her scent called to him.

"The great goddess Ameterasu has blessed you, little one." He said, as he knelt to be at eye level with the girl, he could hear the subtle shifting of the men near them, his eyes were only for her, though. She looked back at him, unflinching in his gaze.

"What is your name?" He asked too softly for their audience to hear.

"Itachi." She answered in a like tone, her soft voice almost swept away by the summer breeze. If possible his smile widened even further, he looked like an absolute madman.

* * *

And yet Itachi felt strangely safe in his presence, he didn't try to make her feel safer; they both knew he could kill her in a second, but she felt safe.

"I will leave for now." Kyuubi said, loud enough for her father and the Yondaime to hear.

"But I will return." He brought his attention back to Itachi, and his grin suddenly made him seem terrifying and monstrous to her, but she remained still.

"Something to remember me by." then he drew one of his sharp nails down both her cheeks, forming lines that started under her eyes and curved outward slightly as they ran parallel to her nose, she could already feel blood running from them and her eyes widened with the pain. The demon leaned forward and brushed a chaste kiss across her slightly parted lips, and then he was gone, vanished into the night.

* * *

Uchiha Fugaku felt slightly ill, the Kyuubi had attacked Konoha, he was going to come back, his only child and heir had apparently received Ameterasu's Blessing, and the demon fox had stolen her first kiss.

'This is bad', the thought, reviewing in a second all the clan law that applied to such a situation, then he mentally slapped himself, 'this isn't bad…this is terrible.'

The Kyuubi no Kitsune, Lord of the Forest, had just forged a legally binding marriage contract between himself and his daughter, for the person who took an Uchiha's first kiss was automatically entered into an engagement with that Uchiha. It was ancient clan law, going back to the time when their ancestor Madara had gotten tired of his clansmen having illegitimate children who eventually grew up to have the Sharingan, so Madara and several clan elders had put together a scroll, bound with Fuuin and enough chakra and sealing jutsu of its' own to automatically update itself and enforce it's rules and the marriage obligations.

There was no way out of it, several generations had tried and failed, his daughter was going to marry the Kyuubi no Kitsune. Things couldn't possibly get worse.

Then his daughter turned to face him with two lines that would scar running down her face and the fully formed Sharingan spinning wildly in her eyes.

He was wrong.

* * *

To be continued.

* * *

Hehe…poor Fugaku.

Next chapter coming soon!!

Cake-chan


	3. Repercussions and Superstition

Bride of the Forest Lord

Bride of the Forest Lord

Chapter Two;

Repercussions and Superstition

* * *

The a few days later Yondaime, Sandaime, Jiraya, and Uchiha Fugaku were all in the Hokage's office. Minato found himself curious as to why the clan head would practically demand a meeting so soon after the Kyuubi's attack.

"Fugaku-san, why did you ask for this meeting?" Yondaime asked, surveying the carefully blank look on the Uchiha clan head's face.

"It is to discuss certain happenings which took place during the unfortunate event a few evenings ago." Fugaku said, blank face growing even blanker if possible. Minato began to get worried; he had found that a blank-faced clan head never had good news to tell him.

"Yes, the Kyuubi's attack on the village, we are very lucky that the demon did not do more damage or take more lives." Sandaime said; the elder shinobi was also curious as to the nature of the Uchiha clan head's agenda. Fugaku visibly steeled himself and said:

"Yes, it is very good that the Kyuubi's attack ended swiftly but," here the clan head paused, frown lines appearing more deeply on his face, the other occupants of the room suddenly noticed that it looked as though he had not had a good night's sleep since the attack, "there is more that transpired on that night than you know of."

There was silence after this statement, Jiraya leaned forward, he could tell that this matter was of deep concern to the clan head and so he would hold his comments.

"Were there events that happened before we arrived to where the demon accosted your daughter?" Minato asked.

"No, but you heard what the demon said, you saw what it did to her!" Fugaku's voice rose as his composure began to break.

"Yes, I remember what happened; the Kyuubi told you daughter that she was blessed or something, scarred her face, and said that they would meet again. I fail, however, to see this as the catastrophe you do." Minato answered sharply back. An enraged look passed over Fugaku's face before it left him looking older and more tired than he had before, he sighed.

"I am sorry for my outburst; I had forgotten that you did not know the gravity of these events." The clan leader sat down heavily in the chair he had risen from.

"Let me tell you of the start of the Uchiha and the beginning of all things." Fugaku began, settling himself more comfortably into hic chair.

"A long time ago, the god Susano'o created the Bijuu, they were creatures of war and strife, wandering throughout the lands, fighting with each other and searching tirelessly for battle. They were true monsters back then, because Susano'o had only created them to crave violence as his instruments of war, but the goddess Ameterasu had seen this and it displeased her greatly, so she gave the Bijuu hearts and minds and they stopped their roaming and battle mongering and settled, each of the nine demons claiming a territory that complimented their powers and the elements that had birthed them. There was peace for a few decades but after awhile the Bijuu's territories began to be settled by humans. Initially the demons reacted violently to the presence of humans but the humans made peace with the demons, they would make sacrifices and respect the demon's lands and the demons would stay their hand from destroying the human's villages."

The Uchiha clan leader took a deep breath, collecting himself before he continued, he had lapsed into a reverie as he told his tale, not noticing how the Yondaime and Sandaime were raptly attentive while Jiraya copied down his every word.

"After some time, when the Bijuu were well used to humans, the demons began to look among the humans for love; because the goddess Ameterasu had given them hearts they began to use them. But no matter how they searched they could not find a mate who was strong enough to survive their awesome power, Ameterasu saw this, and so she made it so there was a perfect match for each of the Bijuu, blessed by the goddess with the strength and fire that was essential for the bride of a demon."

Minato gasped and Fugaku was brought out of his reverie.

"So that's what the Kyuubi meant! When he said '_Ameterasu has blessed you_'," The Yondaime Hokage made air quotes around the demon's words, "I can understand why you're upset…" Fugaku held up a hand.

"No, I have not finished yet." The clan head said. "A little more than eighty years ago, in the time of the Shodaime, when Konoha had just been founded, Uchiha Madara, our great ancestor, got tired of the clansmen going off and having illegitimate children who would inherit the Sharingan. So, he and the clan elders at the time made a rule, the person who receives an Uchiha's first kiss is automatically bound into a marriage contract with that Uchiha."

"You mean…"

"Yes, my little girl is the bride of the Kyuubi!!" At this point Fugaku burst into tears; while the Yondaime, Sandaime, and Jiraya sat around and digested this information.

* * *

Itachi sat on the roof of the Head family's house in the Uchiha compound, everyone was suddenly afraid of her and she hadn't been told why, but she knew.

It was not normal to manifest a fully formed Sharingan at five years old, she knew.

It was not normal to get away from demon lords with only minimal scarring to show for it, she had been told.

But Itachi had never been normal, because she knew it was also 'not normal' to have graduated the academy in one year or be a genin at age five. The only person to have graduated so quickly and so young before her was Hatake Kakashi, and the clan didn't speak of the 'Copy Ninja'.

She had been eavesdropping on the gossiping clanswomen and had heard the gist of what they said her fate was, to be the bride of the Kyuubi. It didn't upset her the way it upset the others, in fact she was ironically pleased. Now they could never marry her off or make her retire as a ninja and become just another Uchiha baby-popping machine, her future was already spoken for.

Itachi hugged her knees to her chest and looked over the Uchiha compound, remembering why she had climbed up on the roof anyway. The elders had called a clan council meeting, they were going to decide her fate and she wasn't going to just wait around for them to tell her what they wanted her to do with her life. She scooted herself closer to the window she had opened, her sensitive hearing detecting the murmured conversation that frequently began the meetings. Hopefully they wouldn't even notice the small roof ventilation window was open. Itachi closed her eyes and focused on listening while down below the meeting had begun.

"I say we should banish her from the clan!"

"No! Itachi is still part of clan Uchiha; if we banished her we would have no control of her actions!"

"SILENCE!!" Itachi was surprised by her father's interruption of the bickering council members.

"Itachi is staying here with the clan." Fugaku said, "She is still a daughter of clan Uchiha and recent events have not changed that."

"But if she is to be the bride of that demon then she cannot take your place as clan head!!" one of the elders called out.

"Itachi will no longer be the heir to the clan, that is true, but my wife is pregnant with another child. This child will become the clan head and Itachi..," here Fugaku paused, "…Itachi will go down whatever path fate has ordained for her."

The room when silent as the implications of what Fugaku had said sunk in. One of the elders stood.

"You don't honestly mean you'll let that… that Demon have her?!" the councilman gestured wildly, his face flushed from the vehemence of his question.

"I do, all of the necessary requirements have been filled, and as much as I hate to say it my daughter is the bride of 'that Demon'." Fugaku sighed and sat down heavily in his chair.

"This Meeting is adjourned." He stated solemnly.

As the council slowly filtered out of the room he remained sitting, contemplating the future, and what he would have to do.

* * *

i'm back. sorry for the long hiatus.

R&R, if you please!

Cake-chan


	4. Four Years Later

Four Years Later

* * *

In the four years that had passed since the Kyuubi's attack on Konoha and the subsequent events no one had aged as much as Uchiha Fugaku. The stress lines under his eyes had gotten deeper and he almost never got a full night of sleep anymore.

Instead he would lie awake and think of everything that had happened. So far, things had been going rather well, or as well as they could go when your daughter was betrothed to a demon and your entire clan was terrified of her and tried to ostracize her at every turn.

Itachi, his darling Itachi, was a genius beyond reckoning, having become a Chuunin at age seven and a Jounin at age eight; she was progressing faster than any ninja before her and was certainly one of the most powerful in the village. He was getting a taste of his own medicine, now, because he couldn't tell a soul of her progress; the entire clan saw her as a threat, and, as far as they knew she was still a genin.

They wouldn't speak of her, if she came up in conversation they changed the subject, it was almost amusing; how they absolutely hated her but wouldn't dare let the village know what had happened to earn their ire. From what he had heard of the village's gossip they simply thought she was being ignored in favor of Sasuke, the clan _heir_, his son. He was glad that they had never found the truth, because he had enough trouble from the other clans as it was, without them knowing that his daughter was betrothed to a demon.

A demon that had every intention of keeping that engagement; for all that they ignored her, the mysterious gifts that Itachi received were all that they talked about. The gifts had begun to arrive when she was six; just little trinkets like bracelets with beads of onyx and amber, then, as she grew older, the bracelets steadily increased in quality, with beads of jade and rose quartz. Finally, for her ninth birthday, the Kyuubi had given her a set of ivory combs, intricately carved with jasmine blossoms. As upsetting as it was that the Kyuubi could come and go whenever he liked he knew that Itachi adored them, he had noticed her wearing them, the bracelets clacking softly on her wrists, one of the fine combs holding back her hair on special occasions. The thought that someone, if even a demon, was making her happy was a small consolation. All he could do for her was to keep the council from interfering in her life and show her how to make herself increasingly more independent from the clan; a personal bank account, separate from clan funding, as a place to deposit her mission pay, scrolls of jutsu she might find interesting left out on his desk. The necessary politic of being clan head forcing him to show only the quietest of affections for his firstborn daughter.

Fugaku had begun to worry lately, because ever since she had become a Jounin Itachi had been spending more and more time away; always training or on a missions. The increasing absence brought into his mind the worst possible scenarios; was she perhaps growing resentful of the clan? Was she purposefully exiling herself?

He sighted and decided that it was time to get up, for he knew he would get no more sleep that night. He dressed silently, so as not to wake Mikoto, he loved his wife, even thought she had disappointed him in the direst way, siding with the rest of the clan over their daughter.

Silently, Fugaku made his way towards the kitchen, and paused. He knew the light hadn't been left on. He silently slid the door open and was greeted by the sight of Itachi sitting at the kitchen table, she was looking at the door already, and had probably sensed him sic he had left the bedroom.

"Tousan." She greeted quietly. He checked the wall clock, it was nearly two in the morning.

"Itachi." He replied in kind, finally noticing the stark black and white of the ANBU uniform she was wearing, "Congratulations." He added.

Itachi smiled softly for a moment, pleased with the praise, and for a moment it was just his sweet little girl looking up at him instead of a seasoned ninja. She looked down and finished wrapping her ankles, pulling on heavy, black knee-high boots and making sure they were tight and secure, she stood up and adjusted the sleeveless black spandex jumpsuit, tightening the straps of her bone-white armor and securing her scroll belt and sword in place. Adjusting her elbow-length gloves and making sure the hair tie that held her low ponytail in place was tight; as Fugaku watched this ritual of preparation for departure he found himself looking down at the table, and staring at the grinning weasel mask, no one could ever accuse Yondaime-sama of not having a sense of humor, although it was probably his own fault for naming her that in the first place.

"How long?" he asked, already knowing the answer but still having to hear it, his gaze following the mask as Itachi took it from the table to secure it in place; the transformation from Itachi to Weasel finally complete. She turned and focused her gaze on him, although he couldn't see her eyes for the darkened holes they were supposed to occupy.

"A month after I became a Jounin; Hokage-sama gave me the mask as a birthday present." Was the muffled reply, her already monotone voice rendered inflectionless by the thick porcelain.

Ah, so two years in July. He was wondering if it was wrong to be relieved that his daughter had been secretly conscripted into one of the most powerful and notorious groups in Konoha, and the only reason he had found out was by _accident_, most parents, he supposed, would be horrified. _At least _he thought _she was socializing, even if they are a group of infamous nutcases._

He watched as she turned and left, waving over her shoulder as he disappeared off into the night, he got up and closed the door after her. Fugaku sighed heavily and went to check on his son, the four-year-old as sleeping peacefully. He hoped that his wish for at least one of his children to have a happy childhood wasn't completely naive.

The Uchiha Clan Head looked out the window and into the night and prayed that it wasn't.

* * *

Itachi savored the feeling of the wind whipping through her hair as she ran over the village rooftops towards the Hokage's Tower, it was calming and peaceful, and she had had so little of both of those lately. She had started having nightmares again, visions of the Third Secret War and the work she did as an ANBU. One could only work themselves until they collapsed into dreamless sleep so often before they burned out and weren't able to do anything at all; and she had found it increasingly hard to work herself to collapsing. She was powerful, she knew, but she didn't think she should be this powerful, not for one so young, no amount of genius should have improved her this fast, made her as swift and strong as she was, but it had, and it was beginning to scare her.

She hardly used the Sharingan, even though she had mastered it, preferring to do the work to learn things herself, but she learned things so quickly anyway. She had asked Kakashi and he had said that he had thought the same things when he was younger, not that he wasn't young now, still being only fifteen himself. Then he had said it was nice to meet someone freakier that he was, because he was never going to let her forget that she had broken his record, but he was still her squad leader and her friend.

Itachi arrived at the Hokage's Tower, even thought it was late the building was still bustling with activity, late night returns being processed and all sorts of people up and about. They didn't notice the slight shifts of shadow as she passed by, deftly avoiding detection as she made her way to the Hokage's office.

When she reached the hall way outside of his office she stepped out of the shadows and glided down the hallway, nodding to the two ANBU guards on either side of the door. They tensed when they saw her and she smirked behind her mask; it was always the rookie ANBU who were assigned to the dog-watch shifts, their more experienced counterparts foisting the more undesirable duties off on the new recruits. Itachi turned to the ANBU standing on the left, the traditional position of the commanding squad member.

"Is Hokage-sama occupied?" she asked, the blank masks that they wore informed her that they were still trainees and that her assumptions were correct.

"Um, no, Yondaime-sama isn't occupied." The ANBU answered, "He's been waiting for you Weasel-san." there was a stutter in his voice, Itachi was unsurprised; it was common practice during the ANBU training course to point out the more notable and unpredictable members to the trainees so that they wouldn't set someone off and get themselves killed.

She nodded once to them and opened the door, stepping through silently and closing it behind her. Itachi crossed the room and Yondaime motioned her into one of the chairs in font of his desk, she sat while Minato poured two cups of tea from the service beside his desk, kept there for late nights in the office.

"You wished to speak with me, Hokage-sama?" Itachi queried, removing her mask to sip at her tea. Minato grinned hugely but didn't immediately answer, instead taking the time to study his youngest ANBU. She reminded him greatly of a younger Kakashi; the serious demeanor, the unhappy home life. But whereas Kakashi had simply lost both of his parents, most of Itachi's clan simply ignored her and he feared that if it weren't for the influences of her father she would have been exiled by now; Fugaku had gained his undying respect for the vigorous battle he fought against the clan elders. Minato was trying to reverse the damages that had already been done, but the process was slow and the mistrust Itachi held for others was much greater than any desire for human companionship. Not that he blamed her, but he felt that if she spent more time with people who had heard nothing of her past and was given the chance to make her own impression then she would find that not everyone was like the majority of Clan Uchiha. Which was the reason he had called her here.

"Itachi, I'm giving you a vacation." he said at last, and swallowed a grin at the way both of her eyebrows rose simultaneously.

"Sir?"

"A vacation. You've been working non-stop for the past two years, it's time you took a break. So I'm giving you a travel pass for a month and kicking you out of the village." He grinned.

"Oh, I take it that this is my birthday gift for this year." she said, looking less surprised.

"Nope." The surprise was back, "This is to get you ready for your gift. A new assignment. I'm making you captain of Squad Three." Minato greatly enjoyed the look of shock that passed over Itachi's face, for once knowing exactly what she was thinking. Squad Three had a reputation within the ANBU; they were the best, and because they were the best they got all the most challenging and difficult missions.

"You have this vacation to relax, because after it's over I want you back here and ready to go," his manner became serious, "Use this time to heal, Itachi," he said softly, "Get the hell away from that family of yours, sleep for a few days, go to a hotspring, and find a quirk that keeps you sane; even if it's as ridiculous as green spandex."

He was giving her a month to pull herself together, she would repay his trust. She nodded, and the somber expression left Yondaime's face.

"Great!" He rummaged around on his desk before triumphantly holding up a slim packet of papers, "These should do to get you anywhere you want to go, I don't think I have to lecture you about due caution or not provoking enemies and such, you have more common sense than that." he handed her the papers and shooed her towards the window.

"Have a good time!" he yelled after her as she dissapeared into the night.

* * *

To Be Continued....

* * *

Yay! I finally got it typed up!

A few notes about this chapter: I think that Fugaku, if given the proper motivation, has the potential to be a really great dad. So in this I gave him that motivation, he's still he clan head and he still knows how to do some pretty slick political maneuvering but this time he is fully on-board for his kids.

Also, about the comment Minato made, "find a quirk that keeps you sane" I think that most of the higher level ninja have, over time, all developed their own unique quirks; like Kakashi and his porn or Gai and his spandex or Genma and his senbon. They can be very subtle or very bold, but they all have one that they developed as a way to keep sane in their crazy world of ninja-ing, as something that they could focus on to the exclusion of other, more upsetting, things. Itachi doesn't really have one yet, so Yondaime is hoping that while out on vacation she'll find something. Which she will.

Hmmm...does anyone actually read these notes anymore?

Cake-chan


End file.
